Sonoma presentation trims Olsen Park plan to meet $415,000 budget; residents press surfacing, trees

Anne Baker, a landscape architect with Land Culture LLP, presented a 50% construction document update to the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Commission on Olsen Park that trims several features to meet a $415,000 construction budget.

The design keeps the park’s existing footprint but replaces sand in the main play structure with an accessible play surface, adds a toddler sand area with a small boat feature, creates a shortened loop path and smaller lawn, and increases tree plantings in raised planters to improve long-term tree health. Baker told the commission the team had “to remove some elements” to meet the budget and was proposing new shade trees and a mix of low-water plantings and site-appropriate specimen trees.

The changes respond to community input gathered at an on-site visioning meeting and online survey that prioritized shade, improved paving and toddler play. “Shade” was the highest-scoring feature in that outreach, Baker said.

Why it matters: Olsen Park is a neighborhood pocket…